Commendable Police Work

The mainstream media is often willing to jump all over police departments when mistakes are made, but law enforcement accomplishments often go unreported. The quick and effective work by local police in the horrific Somer Thompson case did not save her life, but greatly enhances their chances of catching the monster who murdered the little girl.

Somer vanished on her one-mile walk home from school Monday in a heavily populated residential area in the Jacksonville, FL suburb of Orange Park. Searchers combed the area before investigators, following garbage trucks that collected trash Tuesday, spotted her lifeless legs in a landfill about 50 miles away.

Clay County Sheriff Rick Beseler said the quick discovery of Somer’s body, two days after she disappeared, may have saved precious evidence that could lead to her killer. “Had we not done this tactic, I believe that body would have been buried beneath hundreds of tons of debris, probably would have gone undiscovered forever,” Beseler said.

Sheriff Beseler also said investigators would soon be able to pinpoint the specific trash bin where the little girl was dumped by analyzing surrounding trash in the landfill. This makes the case much more likely to be solved.